Acne vulgaris is a disease of the pilosebaceous glands characterized by an unsightly eruption of the skin of the face, neck, back and chest. Acne vulgaris is a common affliction of the adolescent and affects a small but significant percentage of the adult population. Acne vulgaris lesions are of four basic types: comedones (blackheads or whiteheads,) papules, pustules, and cysts (or nodules). Various topical agents used in the treatment of acne vulgaris include sulfur, sulfur compounds, resorcinol, salicylic acid, benzoyl peroxide, various retinoids including tretinoin, tazarotine and adopalene, and topical antibiotics. Acne vulgaris involvement results in unsightly lesions, particularly on the face, and in some cases results in severe scarring.
Acne rosacea, commonly called simply rosacea, is an inflammatory disorder of the skin that, despite its name, seems to bear no relationship to acne vulgaris. In contrast to acne vulgaris, rosacea occurs predominantly in middle-aged adults and is virtually never observed in adolescents or young adults. Rosacea is characterized by inflammatory lesions of the skin that resemble acne vulgaris papules and pustules (“acneform” lesions) and a disorder of the superficial cutaneous vasculature resulting in erythema, accentuated flushing and telangiectasia. Comedones, a hallmark of acne vulgaris, do not occur as part of the rosacea “complex.” Rosacea is treated with a variety of topical therapies including sodium sulfacetamide, topical antibiotics and metronidazole.
Carbamide peroxide (also known as urea peroxide) is a chemical long used as an agent to soften earwax for removal and in mouthwashes to provide cleansing action in the oral cavity. In recent years carbamide peroxide has been incorporated into toothpastes for the purpose of whitening teeth. Carbamide peroxide's first use for the treatment of acne vulgaris was disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,607,101 issued Aug. 19, 1986, incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,607,101 disclosed a method of treating non-inflammatory acne vulgaris, composed of open and closed comedones, with topically applied carbamide peroxide. In the Examples of U.S. Pat. No. 4,607,101, carbamide peroxide was used to treat open and closed comedones, and carbamide peroxide in combination with either an antibiotic or nicotinamide was used to treat patients having both comedones and inflammatory lesions of acne vulgaris.
The applicant has discovered, quite surprisingly (and in direct opposition to the teaching in U.S. Pat. No. 4,607,101) that carbamide peroxide by itself is quite effective at treating the inflammatory lesions of acne vulgaris, and acne rosacea. The invention, therefore, encompasses an improved method of treating inflammatory acne vulgaris or rosacea utilizing application to the skin of solutions, creams, gels, or lotions containing carbamide peroxide.